Orthotic (halo) braces are worn by patients recovering from spinal surgery to hold them immobile while healing. A halo brace allows for the most rigid fixation of the cervical spine and is used primarily for multiple level complex cervical spine surgery patients or for patients having unstable fractures. The halo consists of a titanium ring around the patient""s head which is held in place by three or more screws anchored in the patient""s skull. The ring is attached by three or more bars to a vest worn on the trunk to anchor the device and hold the neck in place. The halo device is worn at all times until the spine heals. The halo immobilizes the head and neck to provide stability for the healing spine. Typically, a patient wearing a halo wears it constantly for between three and nine months while the spinal injury/surgery completely heals.
Although the halo brace is a necessary part of the treatment for recuperating from a serious spinal injury, the halo brace and vest assembly is heavy, bulky, and extremely uncomfortable for the wearer. Since the halo brace assembly cannot be removed from the patient for the duration of the recuperative process, the patient generally finds relaxation and sleep extremely difficult.
There have been attempts to address this problem, one such attempt being described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,210,894 to Minton. The ""894 patent describes a pillow for use by the user of a head immobilizing device having a circular member and a plurality of longitudinally extending struts, the pillow having a T-shaped slot which will accommodate the device while allowing the unslotted portion to support the user""s head. The ""894 pillow, while useful, only supports the uppermost portion of the patient""s head and does not provide adjustable support. There therefore remains a need for a device to provide comfort and support to the patient""s head interior to the halo. The present invention addresses this need.
The present invention relates to an inflatable pillow for positioning between a patient""s head and a head immobilization halo brace. The halo is typically screwed to the patient""s head and has at least two post members extending from the head-encircling band member. The pillow includes an elongated flexible base member, a first post connector coupled to one end of the base member and a second post connector coupled to the other end. An elongated inflatable bladder having at least two independently inflatable chambers is connected to the base member. A check valve is operationally connected to each respective independently inflatable chamber such that the pressure of each chamber may be independently regulated for maximum patient comfort.
One object of the present invention is to provide an improved pillow for use with a halo brace. Related objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description.